SAD demands rollback of decision to slash government holidays

Chandigarh – Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Thursday termed the Congress government’s decision to slash the list of government holidays as a totally dictatorial, irrational and insensitive’ step taken without taking the other stakeholders into confidence, even as it demanded its immediate rollback. In a statement here, SAD spokesman and senior Vice President Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said the Congress government had been playing gimmicks since its formation to divert the people’s attention from its failures as it had betrayed the people of Punjab on every promise made to them to get their votes.“Now it has suddenly slashed the list of government holidays, arrogantly ignoring the peoples’ cultural and religious attachments to those important days,” he added. Castigating the state government for deleting the important occasions like birth and martyrdom day of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Vaisakhi, Mahashivratri, Parshuram Jayanti, May Day, Martyrdom day of Shaheed Udham Singh, Eid-Ul Juha, Masom day of Guru Tegh Bahadur and installation of Guru Granth Sahib, the SAD leader said nobody could argue about the importance of these days as helped us recognise the common fabric of brotherhood that keep us al united amidst the differences of faith, creed and caste.He said the government should not repeat its history of playing with the sentiments of people which could push the state into the communal disharmony. Rejecting the state government’s lame excuse of providing better governance by the slashing of government holidays, the SAD leader said that the Captain Amarinder government could not even find time to complete its Cabinet strength by executing much-needed expansion since last nine months, let alone the welfare of people. “The Secretariat always wears a deserted look as the ministers don’t bother to visit their offices. There has been no governance at all in the State since the last nine months,” he added.